Screen assembly for wells



March 14, 1950 Filed July 25, 1945 T. A. HUBER SCREEN ASSEMBLY FOR WELLS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 F/ezg I A INVEIVT'OR. VWMZ'M yfl/mfmd ATTORNEY.

March 14, 1950 Filed July. 25, 1945 T. A. HUBER SCREEN ASSEMBLY FOR WELLS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 wdw WWW

ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 14, 1950 UNITED SCREEN ASSEMBLY FOR'WELLS Theodore :A. Huber, Corpus Christi, .Tex., assignor to Standard Oil Development Company, a corporation ofDelaware Application July; 23; 1945-, S,erial,No-.. 606,541.

5 Claims.

The present invention is directed. to a screenor. perforated pipe member adapted for use in. cased wells which allows perforationof the casing after the screenhas been placed in position With!- in the casing.

An objector. the present invention is the-provision of a screen or slotted pipe adapted to be placed within a cased-borehole so that the casing may be perforated by a mechanism lowered within the screen without harm to the screen.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a screen or slotted liner. adapted to. be placed within a cased borehole and provided with a series of spaced openings, means adapted to close said openings at the option of an operator and a guide means. adapted to cooperate with a gun. perforator to position the gun perforator so that bullets shot therefrom pass. through the openingsinto the casing withoutharmto the body of the screen member.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention may be seen from a reading of the following description taken with the drawing in which Fig. l is an elevation. partly in section, of. a screen constructedin accordance with the pres;- ent invention arranged within a cased borehole with the figure showing a section of the casing cemented in position adjacent a formation;

Fig. 2 is a, View of that section of the boreholeshown in Fig. 1 with a borehole gun. within the screen and illustrating the appearance of the borehole immediately after the casing has been perforated by use of the borehole gun;

Fig. 3 is a view of the embodiment of the precedin figures with the borehole gun removed, the openings in the screen, through which the casing was perforated, closed and the closingtool in the position it occupies immediately after the closing mechanism has been activated;

Fig. 4 is an elevation, partly in section, of another embodiment of the present invention shown in. position in a section of casing cemented in. a well; and

Fig- 5. is a view of the embodimentv of. Fig. 4 after. the casing, has beenperforated andishowing the;v ports in the. screen, throughwhichtheperforations weremade, closedand the closing tool in the position it occupies immediately after the closing means has been activated.

Turnin now specifically to the drawing and first to the. embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1,. 2 and.3, a borehole is shownpenetrating formation H... A casing 12 isarranged. within the borehole. and is. cemented: into positionbya layer of. cement t3... It. will. be understood that casing l2 extendsabove and below that portion. of the. borehole shown. in the drawing and communicates at. its. upper end with the surface of the earth. and has its lower end provided. with. conventional arrangements, not shown, employed for the setting. of easing.

Arrangedwithincasing I2 is a tool or assembly A.. Body l5 of assembly A15 in the formof a tube with. aplurality of small slot or screen openings "5- and spaced relatively'largeside ports or open-- ings ll. Assembly A isconstructed withsuchexternal dimensions. as to allow it to be lowered into position within the casing. After assembly A. has been-lowered into'position, itis desirable to prevent. fiuid flowbetweenthe. interior'of the casing and theupper end of: the assembly and, accord.- ingly, a packer I8 is mounted on the upper end of member l5. It will be. understood that packer I8 allows assembly A to be moved freely down through the casing. toits position adjacent the formation to. be-penetrated and when this depth hasbeen.reached,,the packer may be set; packers suitable for. this purpose are well known to the art and for the purpose of. simplifying the draw ing packer l8 hasnotbeenz. shown in. detail. but only schematically..

Assembly A. is. provided with asuitable guide means for cooperating with a. borehole gun to guide the gun into a: predetermined position with each. of the. bullets of the gun adjacent a port 11, whereby upon the firing of the gun the bullets pass through ports IT and perforate casing l2 and cement l3. In the drawing, the guide means is indicated. asacylindrically shaped insert I 9 having itsupper end cut at a slant/and the slanting: surface designated by numeral 3. A longitu dinal groove 9 extends-vertically downward from the lower. edge of surface 8-. Insert I9 is commonly known to the artasa sleeve cam or mule shoe throw guide.

The lower end of body I5 is shaped to form ledge. 20. which. serves to. support. sleeve l9v and the borehole. gun. when the; borehole. gun lowered into. assembly A..

Arranged. within tubular member I5, is a. 0105i.- ure. member B. of. such. construction as to. expose ports I11. when in. a. first. position and. to. cover them. when. in a second position. The closure member is also of such construction as. to inte r.- fore: as. littlaas possiblewith theslots or screen openings. l6; Closure: member B. may be described as. formed. with. anupper. annulus 22,,al'ower. anenulus. 23,. longitudinally extending. members 2.4.. joining the; twoannulirtogether'anda. plurality of spaced annuli 25 arranged between the two I end members 22 and 23 and secured to longitudinally extending members 24. Annuli 25 are shown in the drawing as spaced slightly below ports I! and serve as mounting means carrying cover members 26. Cover members 26 are clear I of ports I! when the closure member B is in a point at which the casing is to be perforated the packer I8 is set to prevent the flow of fluid at the surface between the upper end of the member I5 and casing I2. A borehole gun C is then lowered into position and the casing perforated through ports I I. The borehole gun is then raised to the surface and a tool D lowered into the borehole and employed to move closure B from its first position to its second position. In order to retain closure B in its first position while assembly A is being lowered through the casing and while the casing is being perforated, a shear pin 36 is provided; this shear pin may be readily sheared by tool D and closure B moved from its first to its second position.

The assembly A in position for the perforation of a casing adjacent a desired formation and with the ports exposed to allow the projection of bullets therethrough is shown in Fig. 1. In Fig. 2 a gun perforator C is shown in position in assembly A and adapted for projecting bullets 30 and a lower end 32. The lower end 32 is of through ports I? of assembly A for perforating I 1 the casing. The gun perforator comprises a body such configuration as to cooperate with sleeve I9 1 of the assembly A and is provided with a laterally extending pin I0. As the gun perforator C 3 is lowered within the assembly A, the pin I0 comes in contact with surface 8 and causes assembly C to move angularly until pin I 0 enters longitudinal slot 9 and orients perforator C with respect to assembly A. The gun perforator C is provided with a plurality of barrels 3i with each barrel arranged for projecting a bullet through a port I? when end 32 is engaged with sleeve I9 with the pin I0 lying within slot 9. A cable 33 is arranged for suspending the gun and for transmitting signals from the surface to the gun in the known manner for firing the gun. When the gun is lowered to the position shown in Fig.

2, it will be supported by ledge 20 and the barrels 3| will each be exactly opposite a port I! so that when the gun is fired the bullet may be projected through the ports without harm to screen body I5.

A number of cable suspended gun perforators adapted to be controlled by the operator at the surface of the earth are known to the art and for this reason the operating mechanism of the g-un perforator is not shown in detail. A suitable firing mechanism which may be employed is that disclosed in U. S. Patent 2,296,318, issued September 22, 1942. After gun C has been lowered into position with end member 32 engaging with guide base I9, it may be fired in the usual manner. When the gun is fired the bullets are projected through ports' I1 and penetrate through casing I2, ce-'- ment I3 and into formation II to open communication between the formation and the interior of screen member I5. Fig. 2 illustrates the gun perforator in position after the bullets 3i have been fired and shows the openings through the casing and cement made by the bullets and the bullets lodged in formation II.

Following the firin of the gun perforator, it is withdrawn to the surface in the usual manner and fluid produced from formation II, if the formation is capable of producing fluid. It will usually be desirable to clean the well by allowing it to fiow through the casing perforations and ports I1 into the central passage defined by screen body I5 and thence upwardly through the bore of the hole. The amount of fluid which must be produced from the well in order to clean it will vary with the condition of the borehole and other factors, but usually the well should be allowed to flow through ports I? for a period ranging from 12 to 48 hours in order to insure a thorough cleaning of the formation. Flow of fluid through ports I! is terminated by moving closure B from its first position to its second position. It will be understood that it is not necessary to flow the well through ports I! but the entire production of the well may be caused to pass through screen openings I6.

In Fig. 3 is shown a suitable tool D for engaging with closure member B and for rotating it from its first to its second position. It will be seen that the tool is constructed with an annulus 34 having its upper surface secured to the lower end of a string of tubing 35 and provided with downwardly extending rods 34' adapted to engage with notches 2i of closure B. Upon the lowering of setting tool D into position to engage members 32' with notches 27 and rotating, the pin 36 is sheared and closure B rotated from its first to its second position. Movement of closure B beyond its second position may be prevented by a suitable stop means. In the drawing, the stops are shown as consisting of laterally projecting rods 31 each arranged adjacent a port I1 and having a notch 38 which engages with a corresponding cover member 25. This arrangement aids in sealing ports "il in a fluid-tight manner. After mem-' ber B has been moved from its first to its second position the setting tool may be withdrawn to the surface of the earth and the well allowed to produce through screen openings I6 in the conventional manner.

In the embodiment of Figs. 4 and 5, an assembly A having a body H5 and ports I! is provided with a closure 13 consisting of an annulus I22 positioned at the upper end of the tubular body H5 and downwardly extending members I23, the upper ends of members I23 being secured to annulus I22. The closure 13' is of such dimensions as to be slidable longitudinally with respect to body H5 so that it may be moved from a first position to a second position. Openings I213 are provided in members I23 so that when the assembly is in its first position, openings i234 and ports I1 coincide to allow flow of fiuidthrough the ports and when it is the second position, wall portions of members I23 are adjacent ports I? and prevent the flow of fluid through them. Body II 5 is provided with longitudinally extending guide members I25 to retain the outersurfaces of members i23 adjacent portions of the inner surface of'body H5 while allowing relative movement between clo'sure'B' and body I25. A shear pin 36 is provided so that closure B may be placed in its first position with respect to body H5 when assembly A is at the surface of the earth and after the casing is perforated the pin may be sheared to allow closure B to be moved from its first to its second position.

In Fig. 4 assembly A is shown with closure B in its first position and in Fig. 5 is shown assembly A as it appears after the casing has been perforated, the borehole gun removed from the hole and setting tool D, has been used to move closure B from its first to its second position. In Fig. 5 setting tool D is shown in the borehole. In Fig. 5 setting tool D is shown as constructed with an annulus I34 having its upper surface secured to the lower end of a string of tubing 35. It will be seen that annulus I34 is of such dimensions as to engage with annulus I22 of assembly A and when these annuli I22 and I34 are so engaged, tubing 35 may be moved downwardly to shear pin 36 and move closure 3 from its first to its second position to close ports ll. The several parts of the apparatus shown in Fig. 5 are in the position which they occupy immediately after annulus E34 has sheared pin 36 and forced closure B downwardly from its first to its second position. It will be understood that instead of closing means D, shown in Figs. 4-. and 5, other suitable means may be employed for moving closure B from its first to its second position.

While I have shown and described specific embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood by workmen skilled in the art that the present invention is not to be restricted to the specific embodiments shown; for example, instead of employing a slotted tubular body as a screen member, a wire wrapped screen member or other types of well screens may be employed. Similarly, various changes in the dimensions and proportions of the closure means used for preventing the flow of fluid through the ports after the casing has been perforated maybe made by workmen skilled in the art without invention and will be seen to be within the scopeof the present invention.

Having fully described and illustrated preferred embodiments of the present invention, what I desire to claim is:

1. A wall screen assembly, comprising, in com-- bination, a tubular member defining small screen openings and at least one port larger than the screen openings, a closure member slidably mounted on the tubular member and adapted to assume a first position exposingall of the ports larger than the screen openings defined" spaced ports larger than the screen openings and said closure member is circumferentially movable from its first position to its second position.

3. An assembly in accordance with claim 2,-

in which a packer is mounted on the exterior of the upper end of the tubular member and in which said closure member is slidably mounted on the interior of the tubular member.

4. .An assembly in accordance with claim 1 in whichsaid tubular member defines a plurality of spaced ports larger than the screen openings and said closure member is longitudinally movable from its first position to its second position.

5. An assembly in accordance with claim 4 in which a packer is mounted on the exterior of the upper end of the tubular member and in which said closure member is slidably mounted on the interior of the tubular member.

THEODORE A. HUBER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Reistle June 8, 1943 

